Spine
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A prospective, multicenter study. ⋯ Tc-MEP alert during position change is an important sign of spinal cord injury due to alignment change at the upper thoracic spine. Tc-MEP monitoring before supine-to-prone position change was necessary to prevent spinal cord injury in surgeries for T-OPLL.
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Retrospective analysis on prospectively collected data. ⋯ The incidence of spine trauma in elderly patients continues to increase. Previous publications described preexisting conditions that imply increased mortality, but ours is the first to develop a predictive calculator. Prospective research is planned to externally validate this model to better determine its predictive value and utility in the clinical setting.
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The impact of not achieving ideal realignment in the global alignment and proportion (GAP) score in adult spinal deformity (ASD) correction on clinical outcomes is understudied at present. ⋯ In ASD patients who meet age-adjusted realignment goals, GAP proportionality does not significantly alter complication rates. However, GAP proportionality remains an important consideration in patients with sub-optimal age- adjusted alignment. In these cases, severe global disproportion is associated with higher rates of reoperation, implant failure, rod fracture, and junctional failure.
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Experimental study of the ligamentum flavum (LF) thickness among patients with lumbar spinal canal stenosis (LSCS). ⋯ In patients with LSCS, thickening of the LF on MRI appears to represent tissue hypertrophy. The association between the thickness of the LF on MRI and age, disc degeneration, and disc level may indicate simultaneous alterations of spine components along with aging that was cancelled by the effects of haemodialysis.
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Case-control study. ⋯ While infrequent, patient complaints against orthopedic spine surgeons are most related to access and availability. The rate of malpractice events varies widely between surgeons.